Thursday, July 11, 2013

Stolen Bicycle recovered using Facebook

" On December 12, 2013 the complainant reported her bike stolen, the
bike was in front of her residence and she did not give anyone
permission to take it. It was a black and green Cannondale road bike,
with a white seat with pink paint on it. The complaiant was looking to
see if she could find her bike being sold over any websites. She checked
craigslist & ebay and looked in the local bike shops. She then
joined a group on Facebook called “Philadelphia stolen bikes”.
She posted her bike photo and information on the website. On July 8,
2013, she saw a post on the stolen bike network telling her that a bike
on craigslist looked like hers that was being sold for $1000. She then
clicked the link that gave her the site on craigslist and it sent her to
a listing that displayed a bike like hers. She sent an email to the
seller asking if the bike was still available and received a reply
saying “yes”. She then sent the person another email telling him she
wanted it and asked where they could meet. A time was set up to meet.
The complainant then contacted the 3rd police district and told the
police what was going on. Officers sat on the steps a short distance
away from the defendants house who came out carrying the black and green
cannondale bike. The plainclothes officers then approached and
conducted an investigation. It was definitely the bike with matching
serial numbers and pink paint on it. The officers then returned the bike
to the owner and placed the defendant under arrest.The Philadelphia Police Department strongly recommends that bike
owners photograph their bicycles and record the serial numbers and keep
them in a safe place. In the event their bicycle is stolen steps like
the above can be taken. Contact your local district before aggreeing to
meet any sellers. You can also register your bicycle with your police
districts community relations / crime prevention officers.P/O Michael Duffy #7441
3rd District Crime Prevention Officer"